Mambas peak in Sani Dragon MTB race
The 2017 Quattro ROAG Series was wrapped up with Safire Baynesfield Classic being the final race of the series.
THE Sani Dragon, which is the only mountain bike event that incorporates the never-ending Sani Pass, took place last weekend.
Some crazy, eager Amanzimtoti Cycling Club Mambas dared to do the two-day race which opened up with a 50km route which covered a large loop incorporating some of the most scenic district roads, jeep tracks and single track in the Underberg and Himeville area.
The second day was 42km in length, a race to the summit of the famous Sani Pass and back, starting and finishing at the Premier Resort Sani Pass. To be able to ride up and down Sani Pass is the highlight for most riders and this is what Amanzimtoti Cycling Club member, Clint Evangelides who rode the event for the first time, had to say the day before the race: “It must a hard slog up but the race back down is going to be an exciting one.”
The terrain is demanding but there are a number of other challenges that riders face when competing in the Drakensberg. Rocks and tracks are hard but it’s the altitude that’s the toughest part about racing in the Berg, especially when one is riding up the pass and gets to the final few switch-backs. Trying to concentrate, breathe and fight the altitude is no easy feat.
It is with huge admiration that Amanzimtoti Cycling Club congratulates its members Corrie and Gertie Steenkamp, for their excellent achievement of coming overall first in the mixed category. They had some serious chasing to do on day one as their Garmin packed up at the start but they still found time to take photos while climbing Sani Pass on day two. The other riders were Graeme Yates, Clinton Evangelides, Malcolm Wallace, Shaun Tischendorf and Liezel Davies.
There was a fantastic turn-out for the pre-Amashova training ride which took place on Sunday. Starting in Pietermaritzburg, the riders made their way down to Bike and Bean in Durban. Stephen van Rooyen from Giant Toti Athlone Park was a tremendous help in getting all the riders’ bike to the start and kept up with the slowest rider in case any admin was needed. There is a fair amount of logistics involved when the start is over 100km away from the finish. The club realises the importance for club members to have such training rides, especially for those riding the Amashova for the first time. It is equally important for the riders who want to achieve personal bests and podium finishes to ride the route beforehand. A massive shout-out to Giant Toti Athlone Park and Bronwyn Jones for making this training ride the success it was.
The end of the year must be approaching as award evenings are starting to happen.
The 2017 Quattro ROAG series was wrapped up with Safire Baynesfield Classic being the series’ final race. The other MTB challenges that made up this prestigious series were Compendium Hill 2 Hill, Illovo Wartburg, Sugar Rush, Husqvana Classic and Illovo Eston, all of which were tough outings in their own right.
The ever-consistent podium winner, Hendrik Bester attended the awards evening on Friday night and was presented with his own personalised ROAG number board for winning the vets category for 2017 (age between 40 to 49). This is a noteworthy and outstanding achievement and from now on, he’ll be known as ‘Yster’ Bester. His JoBerg2c partner gave him this nickname as Hendrik’s mind, let alone legs, are made of steel. Bester said: “It was a wonderful evening to finish off the 2017 ROAG series.”
